


bright star, would i were stedfast as thou art

by thiscalamity



Category: Frankenstein - Mary Shelley
Genre: F/F, M/M, Pre-Canon
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-27
Updated: 2020-03-27
Packaged: 2021-03-01 03:58:48
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,012
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23345080
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thiscalamity/pseuds/thiscalamity
Summary: the frankensteins are hosting a ball to celebrate victor's leaving for ingolstadt. just some no plot sweetness surrounding that and our fave gay frankensquad
Relationships: Elizabeth Lavenza/Justine Moritz, Henry Clerval/Victor Frankenstein
Comments: 3
Kudos: 39





	bright star, would i were stedfast as thou art

**Author's Note:**

> title from a love sonnet by keats cos i'm nothing if not predictable. it's also included in the text of the story. please ignore the fact that it is anachronistic for the canon time of the frankenstein novel. i literally don't care cos i wanted to use it lol. originally written as a potential gift for the frankenstein fanwork gift exchange a few years ago. i had decided to go with a different gift, but i figure i might as well post this now too!

There was to be a ball, celebrating Victor’s leaving for Ingolstadt. There was plenty that needed to be done to prepare, but Elizabeth could only think of how thrilled she was that Justine would be in attendance this year. In years past, when the Frankensteins would host a ball -- which happened frequently enough due to Alphone’s position and acclaim in Geneva’s society -- Justine had not been able to attend. Whether due to her ill mother’s demands or Justine’s own sense of duty to the Frankenstein family, she had never been welcomed as a guest, despite Elizabeth’s pleas and insistences. However, for this ball, a turn of events had allowed Elizabeth to bask in full delight at the thought of Justine joining her in the festivities. Of course, Justine would not be able to attend the ball as Elizabeth’s guest. Instead, it was Victor who had invited Justine and offered to be her escort. 

This pleased Elizabeth greatly, as it ensured that Justine could join her and it promised to lessen the rumors that others in town were spreading regarding herself and Victor. She loved Victor dearly and they were family, and, tied as they were to the last wish of Caroline for them to marry, Elizabeth did not like to focus on the inevitability of their match -- particularly, when neither of them were inclined to make it so. Thus, Elizabeth now had the pleasure of having Henry as her own escort to the Frankenstein ball. 

Leading up to the ball, things could not seem more perfect. Outwardly, the four of them -- herself, Justine, Victor, and Henry -- would be companioned as deemed appropriate. However, in their own hearts of hearts, they knew that their couples were meant to be different. Thus, in this way, Justine and Elizabeth knew themselves whomst the other is truly there with, as goes for Henry and Victor -- as it should be. 

~~~

The day of the ball, Elizabeth and Justine were assisting each other in preparing. First, Justine pulled Elizabeth’s finest gown from her wardrobe and carefully placed it on the bed. Her fingers wavered reverently over the fabric, while Elizabeth watched her out of the corner of her eye. Deep in her heart, she wanted to tell Justine to wear the gown to the ball, that she deserved to wear something so fine because of her fine heart and delicate beauty. Elizabeth wanted nothing more than to see the dark crimson dress contrast itself against the warm brown of Justine’s skin. However, she knew that Justine would decline, stating that the dress was too fine for her and that she could never wear a piece like it. In order to please both her desires and appeal to Justine’s senses, Elizabeth offered a trade. Once she had been dressed for the ball, she turned around towards Justine. 

“Justine, darling, it’s your turn.” Elizabeth stated, and flung open the wardrobe doors before Justine could object. 

“Oh! My lady, I couldn’t possibly wear one of your gowns!” Justine cried anyway. 

“Nonsense, I insist.” She pulled from the far-edge of the wardrobe a gown of soft violet.

Elizabeth had not worn it for quite some time, and the detailing was less extravagant than the crimson dress she was currently wearing. Justine could not possibly object. 

“It’s perfect for you.” Elizabeth’s voice was quiet, no more than a whisper. 

She walked towards Justine, who was frozen in her spot. Elizabeth undid the buttons on the top of Justine’s dress and it slid towards the ground. Dressed only in her underthings, a blush rose to Justine’s cheeks. Elizabeth felt a blush on her own cheeks, burning. The reversal of roles was thrilling for Elizabeth, and she took great pleasure in being the one to take care of Justine this time around. Once the gown was correctly fastened and Justine dressed, she went to turn towards the large, gilded mirror that stood in the corner of Elizabeth’s room. 

“Wait!” Elizabeth called out, “There’s one more detail before you’re perfect.”

She quickly stole away to her jewelry box and lifted two small silver chains from inside. As she went to put the necklace around Justine’s neck, she noticed that her hands were shaking. Gently as she could, she clasped the chain and stepped back, placing the second chain around her own neck. Once Elizabeth had added the final detail, Justine turned toward the mirror at last. She made a small noise, barely more than just a breath once she saw her own reflection. Slowly, Justine raised her hand to briefly touch the small bauble on the end of the chain. The gem was a sparkling ruby, wrapped delicately in silver wire around the top. 

“Now we match.” Elizabeth whispered, as the red of the ruby was identical to the red of the dress she had donned for the evening. 

She then pointed to the small gem adorning her own neck, which was an amethyst in the exact shade of the dress she had pulled for Justine. Elizabeth felt tears spring to her eyes, as she saw the two of them standing together in the mirror -- contrasting images of the other, but perfectly matched. Justine reached her hand out, and gently clasped Elizabeth’s own, as they stood and smiled at each other through the mirror. 

“Elizabeth, it is perfect.” Justine said, her voice choked with love. 

~~

As the women entered the room where the ball was being held, they were beyond dazzled. All was alight and trimmed elaborately and beautifully. Quickly, they made their way towards Victor and Henry. The two men were standing very near each other, quite obviously deep in conversation. The dark green of Victor’s coat was a sharp contrast from his pale skin and dark hair, and he appeared as though he had put thought into what he was to wear that evening, rather than simply donning any outfit as he had so often done. Next to him, Henry was a complimentary sight in a deep navy. 

“Victor! Henry!” Elizabeth called, bounding those last few feet.

Victor jumped back at the sound of his name, his face stained red. Seeing that it was Elizabeth and Justine, he visibly relaxed and turned towards them. He bowed, in turn, to Justine and Elizabeth. Henry followed in suit. 

The ball passed by Elizabeth mostly in a blur. She enjoyed a number of dances with Henry, who was as ever a wonderful dance partner, his palm warm and firm against her own. Victor, as always, saved a few dances for her, in between his dances with Justine. He was not quite as graceful as Henry, but he was always full of passion -- as he was with everything he put his mind to. Elizabeth never felt as inspired as she did when she was with Victor. 

Despite her joy in her male dancing partners, Elizabeth found that she could not keep her eyes off Justine. She had expected to feel jealous of the men that were able to dance with Justine, so openly and freely as she wished that she could. She was surprised to discover that she found the secret pleasure of watching Justine removed any ounce of jealousy that she might have felt. Justine was beautiful under the warm glow of the candles, flushed with exertion and excitement. Sometimes, they would catch each other’s eyes over the shoulders of their dance partners, and Elizabeth would see the blush on Justine’s face deepen. In those moments, the love inside of Elizabeth that she had for Justine would well up inside her heart, almost making her falter in her dance steps. She was not as good as she thought at hiding her clumsiness, as she caught Justine smirking briefly in those moments. More than once, her dance partner had to repeat himself the question or statement that he had uttered. There seemed to be no one person more distracted than Elizabeth herself, besides perhaps Henry, who was preoccupied in his own manner and by his own person. 

As the ball wore on into the later hours of the night, Elizabeth and Henry took it upon themselves to approach Justine and Victor with a plan in mind. After a quick glance around, Elizabeth grabbed up Justine’s hand and Henry Victor’s, pulling them towards the doors at the back of the room and out into the yard. The moon hung low and bright in the night sky, bathing all in a silvery glow. In the moonlight, the grass looked like a blanket of pitch, rolling off towards the horizon. There was no one else on the stones at the back of the house, and the music could still be faintly heard through the walls and glass. 

Smiling, Henry reached forward and briefly touched Victor’s cheek. His eyes fell closed, and he let out a shuddering breath. Elizabeth quickly turned away from the intimate moment, but she found herself breathless from the love and adoration that was almost palpable in the air surrounding the four of them. So instead, she turned towards Justine. Justine was smiling slightly, and she reached her hands towards Elizabeth’s, grasping them tightly.

Suddenly, she pulled Elizabeth towards her and wrapped her arms around her, fashioned in a dancing position. Out of the corner of her eye, Elizabeth saw Victor and Henry similarly embraced. 

With the music playing softly in the background, the two pairs started to twirl around in the moonlit courtyard. For all the fun that Elizabeth had had during the ball itself, both her own dancing and watching Justine, there was nothing that could compare to dancing with Justine. She wished that she could spend all her days held firmly in Justine’s strong arms. For what seemed like hours, they passed their time behind the house, dancing with whom they were meant to be. 

After some time, the four found themselves exhausted from dancing, so they took off into the yard, following a makeshift path that they had tread a hundred times over. In about ten minutes time, they had found their favorite knoll to rest upon, and halted their minute adventure. Lying themselves down across the pitch black grass, they found themselves in a familiar position, all leaning against one another. Once settled, Elizabeth breathed a deep sigh, ever contented, and noted to herself that she never felt as at home as she did when she was with her three companions. Henry, Victor, Elizabeth, and Justine laid there in silence, comfortable in every way, for a period of time. 

Soon, Henry removed a small volume from the inside of his coat. 

“You cannot go anywhere without a book of poetry, can you?’ Victor teased Henry, though there was a fondness in his eyes and a softness to his smile. 

“You never know when the moment might call for some beauty.” Henry returned. 

Their eyes held for a moment, a stretched and everlasting moment. Then, under the light of the moon, as though he was reluctant to break his gaze with Victor, Henry started to recite the lines before him. Committed to memory, he did not need to read from the page. 

_Bright star, would I were stedfast as thou art --_

Elizabeth knew that for all Victor’s preoccupation with alchemy and science and learning, his truest passion was listening to Henry -- whether it be fairy tales, poetry, or any words that tumbled from his mouth. 

As Henry continued to recite poetry for no one, truly, but Victor, Elizabeth turned sleepily towards Justine. She had her eyes closed, and her mouth was set in a small smile, still listening to Henry’s voice crest over her. Moving quickly and quietly so as to not disturb her, Elizabeth leaned forward to press a gentle kiss to Justine’s cheekbone. Slowly, Justine blinked her eyes open, her grin growing as she looked at Elizabeth. 

“My beloved, my Elizabeth.” Justine sighed, “Always so sweet.”

“It is easy to be sweet to you, dearest.” 

Their lips met briefly, in the softest kiss, made perfect by the silver moonlight and the hushed murmurs of poetry and the company of their dearest friends.


End file.
